


When Light Took Over

by WhoAreYoutm



Category: Kirby (Video Games), Super Smash Brothers
Genre: I'm a bit of a slow writer, World of Light (Super Smash Brothers), only the best titles here, probably no pairing but that could change, the amount of planning I've sunk into this thing is a little crazy, what have I got myself into
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:06:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25215181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhoAreYoutm/pseuds/WhoAreYoutm
Summary: My take on the World of Light story from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Stars our favorite boy, Kirby, as he saves all who have fallen prey to the light.(Lots of creative liberty taken here)
Relationships: Kirby & Meta Knight, Kirby (Kirby) & Everyone
Comments: 6
Kudos: 33





	1. Crying on Top of a Hill is Not the Best Use of Your Time

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, this is basically just for fun and practice! I really wanted to try my hand at writing a long, multi-chaptered story, so I'm using the World of Light campin from Smash Ultimate as a rather loose base.
> 
> Anyways, hope you enjoy!

Kirby had experienced, perhaps, too many hardships in his short life. Some included a stubborn King who, all too often, set off world ending scenarios and schemes, weird rivals that sometimes acted like your friend and sometimes had you at sword point, monstrous beings that wished to destroy the world, literal super powered Gods that wanted to take over your world, and otherwise normal people who too the whole God complex ideology just a tad too far... lots of God related things, really.

So to say that he was a little miffed at his current predicament, was certainly a heafty statement. A persistent sting of pain kept pulsing sharply at the top of his head. Abrasions on his hands and feet and face stung as dirt began mixing with thin droplets of blood. His mind kept spinning round and round, until it had twisted itself into a nice little headache complete with enough pressure at his forehead to kill a tardigrade. His brain scrambled to update him on his new situation. Little bits of gravel and rock poked his sides and feet, helping to bring him back to awareness.

The longer he remained motionless on the ground, the more he was starting to become aware of the decidedly unfair fact that crash landing your Warp Star at top speeds was, in fact, a painful experience. Tears, unbidden, started pricking at his eyes. And once they started, it was impossible to stop.

Things had gone downhill at a pace that would make Sonic jealous. First there had been Fox's report of thousands of Master Hands appearing out of thin air. This alone would have been bad enough, but then some horrid God-like being--it had pretty wings that Kirby was stupidly jealous of--had decided it was going to condense into a neat little blackhole and then explode in a wave of colors and deadly light. Said light then engulfed all his friends and rivals, and they'd disappeared, possibly gone for good.

Kirby had just barely managed to escape using his Warp Star, but he was left with the difficult decision on what he was supposed to do now. He was by his lonesome and injured and overwhelmed and totally not crying, while curled up on the ground like a pathetic piece of discarded bubblegum. He wasn't even sure where he had landed. When he was fleeing those awful tendrils of light, everything had been on full blown, horror-stricken autopilot with no time to be admiring the scenery. 

With slow, careful movements, Kirby pushed himself to his feet, wincing as his wounds burned in protest. Once he was up, he scrubbed his dirty hands over his eyes to get the waterworks to stop. Crying never solved anything was a cruel but true phrase, after all. Eyes cleared of irritating tears, Kirby immediately shut his eyes again to block the sudden ray of sunlight that had traveled millions of miles from its star just to blind him. Blinking rapidly, he tried again and sucked in a breath at the sight before him.

Stretching miles and miles around him, was a rocky, rust colored, bowl shaped canyon of sorts. At the bottom of the canyon, life flourished. Waterfalls thundered in the middle-distance, rocky ruins, prosperous towns, and long bridges peaked out of countless trees and shrubs. Impossibly large red and blue mushrooms peaked out of a small forest, almost hidden from view by a large city filled with skyscrapers and squat buildings. Tall, imposing mountains stood in the distance, some capped with snowy peaks. To the right of the mountains, a massive volcano loomed, with angry, red streams of glowing lava trailing down its sides. Past the volcano, floating islands scraped the cloud filled heavens.

For a brief moment, Kirby forgot about the pain wearing on his body, forgot about how he may never see any of his friends again, forgot about everything as he breathed in the sight before him. But then, it all came flooding back in as it dawned on him that perhaps there was a reason he had crash landed here. Was there a chance his friends were still alive? Had fate taken the reins to lead him here? He'd certainly experienced other, more farfetched things. Of course, he could also be completely wrong, and just so happened to land in the middle of paradise. Even if he was wrong, there wasn't any harm in exploring the canyon before him. It's not like things could get any worse...

Decision made, Kirby started forward towards a circular stone structure about a mile away. It was one of the first things his eyes had landed on, and it seemed like as good a place to start as any. 

His feet stung with every step forward, and the hot sun beat down on his head. It was a relief when he finally stepped out onto soft, flower speckled grass. He wanted to stop now, but the ruins weren't too far ahead of him now, and he'd rather sit somewhere with a good amount of shade, anyways. So he trekked on, inspecting the grass beneath him as he went. A particularly pretty flower here, an interesting beatle there, a weird shadow out of place coming at him from the left...

Kirby whirled in a panic and then let out a massively relieved breath of air as he took in the familiar features of the shadow's owner.

Short, squat figure, a blue pair of overalls, and a bright red cap with the letter M printed at the front. This was... Mario, right? He certainly looked the part. Everything, from what he was wearing, to the way he held himself screamed Mario. Kirby should be overjoyed! If Mario was here, maybe all the others were okay too. So why, then, was looking at Mario twisting Kirby's usually dependable gut into a knotted mess? This seemed way too easy. He'd just crash landed in a foreign land, all alone and clinging to the desperate hope that, somehow, his friends were all still okay. Kirby may not be the smartest bean in the can, but even he knew something wasn't right. Mario appearing the instant Kirby began looking was sending up all kinds of King Dedede sized red flags. It wasn't until Kirby gave Mario a more thorough once over that he understood why. 

Mario's eyes were usually an amicable baby blue, bright and approachable. Presently, an ominous red glow was obscuring his normally friendly gaze, creeping Kirby out a tad. It also should have tipped Kirby off that something was wrong based on how Mario had yet to say anything to him. Not a greeting, or an exclamation of relief, or even a gasp had left Mario's mouth.

Just as Kirby was about to ask what was wrong with the Italian, Mario's blank expression morphed into a deep scowl, and he raised his fists in a challenge.

'Oh Stars,' Kirby thought as he immediatley shifted to a more defensive stance. He really wasn't ready for a fight.

Even on a good day--today certainly not being one--Mario was an absolute pain to deal with. He struck hard and played a decent punching bag. Add on the Italian's vast battling experience and Kirby's current battered self, and you've got yourself a scrumptious recipe for disaster. Oh, and let's not the possession. Why was it always possession?

Kirby didn't have any longer to dwell on the unfairness of this fight, because Mario was coming at him, real fast. Kirby dove to the left to avoid the elbow aimed at his head, and rolled with the momentum to gain some distance, though not for long.

'Here he comes again.' Kirby raised his fists to block a high powered kick, sliding back a few inches at the force of it. 'Ow, ow, OW!' His scrapes burned with a vengeance as his skin stretched, but, luckily, his arms held the block, giving him enough time to latch onto Mario's leg. Kirby pivoted on the spot and threw Mario as hard as he could at the grass covered ground beneath them.

Must not have been very hard, because Mario was down for barely a second, then he was up again. Without enough time or space to react, a boot collided with Kirby's face, sending him sprawling away. He'd only managed to draw in half a gasp as he landed, when another blow struck across his cheek. That drew a cry from Kirby, tears welling up in his eyes and blurring his vision. Partially blinded and well into panicking, Kirby lashed out at random. A puff of air blew past his head as his foot dug into what was hopefully Mario's diaphragm. He followed it up with another kick in Mario's direction, only to strike empty air. 'Shoot!' Kirby let out a frustrated snarl and scrubbed his eyes furiously, briefly clearing them of tears.

Kirby raked his eyes over the grassy field they were fighting in, and was confused not to find any sign of his opponent. One thundering heartbeat... two...then his face face was back in the dirt. He threw Mario off his back, scrambled to his feet, and turned around in time to catch a left hook. Mario's right fist followed the left, and Kirby caught that as well. They struggled against each other for several heated seconds, Mario's blazing red eyes glaring daggers into Kirby's own.

Two whole seconds of unbroken eye contact, heated and enraged, and then Kirby's foot was crushing Mario's 'mushrooms,' and the Italian was off him in an instant, screaming obscenities and clutching his crotch.

"FIGLIO DI PUTTANA, THAT HURT! LE MIE PALLE! CAZZOoo!"

Kirby would admit, that was a low blow, a real low blow. As in even though he'd been fearing for his life, he still felt bad. It seemed to have somehow broken Mario out of whatever spell he'd been under though, so that was great. Really great, because now Kirby could keel over and not move for just a few moments. He'd already been hurting from his spectacular collision earlier, and this tussle had taken that pain and amplified it by six, at least. So he gingerly sat down on the grass and stared at Mario who was hutched over a ways away, still clutching his crotch and muttering curses in what Kirby had to assume was Italian tongue.

A blessedly cool breeze washed over Kirby as he did a quick look over of his growing number of injuries. The bruising probably wouldn't be so bad, a benefit of being a shock absorbant pink ball. He was mostly concerned with how rolling about in the grass and dirt had irritated his scrapes and abrasions. The thin red lines on his hands now looked inflamed and pulsed in time with his heartbeat. Well, that probably wasn't good.

Kirby peered over at Mario to see that, while he was fairing better, he hadnt left their fight unscathed. Grass stains covered much of his clothes, and he had a few tears at the seams of his overalls. With his hat askew, bits of sweat tinged hair poked out over his dirt covered face. His nose looked a little inflamed, perhaps it had gotten crushed when Kirby threw him. Thankfully, Mario's eyes were their normal blue, without even a hint of the prior red haze.

Mario caught sight of Kirby watching him and immediately looked sheepish. The Italian straightened and made his way over to Kirby's space, ready with an unnecessary apology Kirby could see coming from a mile away.

"I'm real sorry-" He started.

"No, it's okay," Kirby immediately cut him off, because it really wasn't his fault. No one every asked to be possessed, and it would be unfair to judge someone's actions, when they weren't in control.

"But I hurt you." Mario's face scrunched up with guilt as he took in Kirby's numerous wounds. "Really badly."

Kirby waved his hands in dismissal. "I'm all good!" Kirby pointed to a scratched up patch of skin on his cheek. "Most of this isn't your fault anyways."

"It's not? But I attacked you!" Mario clutched his head and looked away with squinted eyes. "That much is clear anyway..."

"Yeah, you did," Kirby said with a small wince and held out his arm. "But I think most of this is from my bad landing earlier."

"Bad landing?"

Kirby looked away, suddenly feeling embarrassed and a little guilty for getting hurt. "Yeah, I, uh, sorta crashed my Warp Star over there," Kirby pointed towards the rocky terrain he'd come from. "I ran out of energy, while I was flying away from...whatever it was that attacked us all."

"Well, Dio Mio! Are you okay?" Mario exclaimed, suddenly looking far more concerned. "What am I saying, of course you aren't! Let me get a good look at your injuries!"

Kirby didn't protest as Mario plopped down next to him and took hold of his hand. There wasn't any point in arguing with the Italian. Kirby was pretty sure the man had a doctorate.

"We gotta get you cleaned up, Kirby." Mario fretted, after taking a good look at Kirby's scuffed up hand.

Kirby titled his head in consideration, staring at the damage on his hand. "Yeah, I guess so. It doesnt hurt that bad though, so I can keep going, right?" He gave Mario a somewhat pleading look, half expecting the Italian to tell him no.

"I suppose..." Mario said with a wince as he looked at a particularly bad scrape on Kirby's left foot. "It's not like I could clean you up now, anyways. I dont have any supplies and-" He glanced around a bit "-there's no water nearby to wash these abrasions."

Kirby frowned, not liking the sound of cleaning out his wounds. It needed to be done, but he knew it would sting worse than getting bit by a transformed Scarfy. Well, it was either grin and bear a bit of pain, or he'd have to face the dangers of infection.

Mario noticed his expression. "Oh, dont look so glum. It won't be that bad."

"I know..." 

Mario smiled with sympathy, scrunching up his damaged nose, and Kirby was reminded he wasn't the only one injured.

"I didnt hurt you too badly l, did I?" Kirby asked, a bit shyly.

"Oh, I'm peachy!" Mario said with a grin. "You didn't hurt me too much. I'm more concerned about your injuries. Our fight probably wasn't that bad, but combining it with your crash landing..." He trailed off, once again looking upset.

"I'm okay, really," Kirby assured him. "It wasnt your fault.

Mario looked dubious for a moment, then his expression changed abruptly, as if he had just had a realization. "You managed to escape...whatever that creature was. Did-did anyone else get away?"

Kirby released a sigh, and stared hard at the ground. "I don't think so."

Mario grimaced and looked away.

"Buuutt, "Kirby drawled, while rolling to his feet. "Maybe we can find everyone else. I found you, after all!"

"That's true." Mario nodded to himself, face brightening as realization dawned. "That's true!" He jumped to his feet. "Well let's a go then! We have to save everyone!"

Kirby huffed out a laugh, caught up in his sudden burst of energy. "O-okay! Right, let's go save everyone!"

They both stood there for a moment.

"So, where should we go?" Kirby asked first.

Mario looked blank. "I'll admit, I haven't any idea where to start looking."

Kirby paused, considering. Where had he been going before? That stone platform with the pillars, right? Maybe they'd find someone there.

Turning in a half circle to find the structure--the taller pillars were just visible behind the crest of a somewhat distant hilltop-- Kirby pointed it out to Mario. "That's where I was going, before I ran into you. Can we start there?"

"Sounds good to me," Mario agreed, peering at the stone columns in the distance. "Off we go, then."

Kirby pushed his aches away and took a step forwards, Mario right beside him. What he'd find out there, the dangers he'd face, the problems he'd encounter, Kirby had no idea. All he had was the faint hope that he'd be able to find and help everyone the same way he'd done with Mario. And maybe that hope would be enough. 


	2. Who's This Galeem Guy and Why Does It Hate Everything?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! This one went through a whole lot of edits. 
> 
> I apologize if any of the characters shift in personality in the beginning. I'm still trying to get a good handle on them. But I'll get it eventually!
> 
> Also, I wanna go ahead and say that this story probably won't contain any of the spirit stuff. I didn't really enjoy them in my playthrough, so I won't be including them here.

"We're here!" Kirby stated cheerfully.

Laying a couple dozen feet ahead of them, was what once might have been an impressive stone structure, now facing the damages of time. Gray cracked columns loomed above a huge circular slab of raised stone around a hundred feet across. At the edges of the structure, in a cross formation, four sets of stairs led up to the center. They were falling apart where green bits of nature squeezed their way through tiny crevasses.

"What do you think we'll find in there?" Mario nodded his head at the ruins.

"Dunno," Kirby hummed. "Maybe it's rigged with magic. Like, if we get close enough, another possessed fighter will show up."

Mario frowned. "That seems sorta unlikely."

Kirby shrugged. "That's basically how I found you. You just popped up out of nowhere!"

"Ah. I was wondering about that. I don't really remember much about what happened." Mario admitted.

"Makes sense," Kirby said. "I'm pretty sure you were possessed by those scary beams of light or something. Your eyes were all glowy and red and evil looking."

"Yikes..."

"Yeah. It was scary."

"Well," Mario began, still looking a bit perturbed. "Hopefully this place will have something for us. There isnt much else of interest around here."

Kirby considered this, while taking another sweeping glance at their surroundings. The Italian wasn't wrong, of course. There was nothing but grasslands and what appeared to be an incredibly old dirt path in one direction. Turning his head revealed more grasslands and slightly taller, fog covered hills. Wait... Fog?

"Hey, was that fog always there?" Kirby asked, eyes still trained on the swirling vapor.

"Fog? What Fog-"Mario pivoted to follow Kirby's gaze. "Oh."

Taking a closer look this time, Kirby felt a small cloud of worry start to form in his gut at what he saw. The heavy mist wasn't staying stationary. It twisted and coiled around itself, weaving swirling patterns as it began visibly coming towards them like a slow moving tsunami. Regular fog didn't behave like that. That had to be magic.

"Mama Mia, that can't be natural!" Mario exclaimed. "We best not get caught up in that! Kirby, let's get a move on!" 

With a new sense of urgency, they both hurried over to the ruins and up the eroded steps. In their haste, neither of them noticed the growing pool of light at the center, slowly increasing in intensity and size. No sooner had Mario's shoe made contact with the final step, the pool of light produced a brilliant flash, assaulting their eyes.

'Choose.'

As the light bled off some of its intensity, Kirby lowered his hands from where he'd reflexively raised them to shield his eyes. Eventually, a large figure became visible, floating at the center of the ruins. It was a white hand, as large as a car.

'That looks just like the hands from before... Like a Master Hand,' Kirby thought, not without a hint of confusion.

"Choose what?" Mario asked slowly, and Kirby glanced quickly at him, before focusing back on the hand as three globes of white light formed in front of it. The spheres shifted into three familiar shapes, three of the many fighters who'd succumbed to the light. 

Marth, Shiek, and Villager.

"I don't get it," Kirby said, brow furrowed. "Aren't you a Master Hand? What are you doing here? And what do you mean by choose? Do we only get to save one of them?"

'I dont have much time here, so I'll have to be brief.' The Hand floated a little closer to them. 'I am indeed a Master Hand. Put simply, the creature of light who took over you all--well except you, Kirby--took control of thousands of Master Hands as well. I believe it wants to use my kind as an army, perhaps in the case anything tries to go against it. That creature's name is Galeem, and it wants nothing more than to eradicate all life on earth and begin a new, pure world that is made up of only light.'

"Why would it do that?" Mario said with a frown.

'I am not sure. Perhaps it sees the beings of this current world as impure? It does not matter, really. Now-'

Kirby held up a hand. "Wait, wait! Didn't you say this Galeem guy took control over all the Master Hands? How are you here?"

'I managed to briefly escape.' The Master Hand said with a hint of pride. 'Galeem may be incredibly powerful, but it is not able to keep control of this many entities so easily. Even so, I feel it dragging me back. Which brings me to why I am here.'

The Hand pointed dramatically at the three unmoving, red-eyed battlers beneath it. 'You may choose one of the three gathered here to fight and free of Galeem's control. I'm afraid I only managed to get a hold of these three. I can't hold them for much longer, so choose promptly.'

"And why cant we save all three of them?" Mario demanded to know.

'In your current state, I'm not sure you could. What if you were overwhelmed? Then who would save everyone?"

As much as Kirby hated to admit it, the Hand was probably right. His whole body was starting to ache something awful from his crash landing and the tussle with Mario. He wasn't healed enough for another difficult fight, and even with Mario's help, the chance of winning against all three skilled battlers was slim. The Italian was a little battered himself, and two on three would be tough enough on its own, regardless of if they were fully prepared for it.

So the question was, who were they going to choose?

Out of the three, Kirby was most familiar with Marth, due to the prince's friendship with Meta Knight. He liked the prince, and he knew the man was a talent at swordsmanship. He'd be a valuable team player right now. As for the others, Kirby didn't know much about Shiek, and he knew even less about Villager, seeing as he hardly ever spoke. As such, Marth would be the obvious choice on Kirby's end, but what about Mario? Who did he get along with best?

'Please do hurry with your selection.' The Hand's voice sounded strained, and its fingers flexed and twitched against an invisible force.

"Right, I think," Mario glanced at Kirby, then at Marth, "That Marth would be the best choice, for now. He's faster and hits harder than both of us, and we need a good defender, right now. Shiek would be nice for scouting ahead, but she doesn't have much endurance. Also, I'm not the most familiar with Villager, so I wouldn't know how to work with him."

Kirby nodded at Mario. "Okay. I wanted Marth, anyways."

'Very well then. I'm sure you will be able to rescue these other two at a later date. Good lu-'

The Master Hand suddenly disappeared with flash of light and a sound like cracking glass. Shiek and Villager vanished as well, only to reappear in separate flashes of light at different ends of the ruins. Large, pale chains flashed into existence around each of them, and Kirby had mere seconds to wonder as to how those could be broken, before he was being shoved aside by Mario as a deadly sharp blade flashed by his face.

'That was close!' Kirby waved his arms in a frantic circle to regain his stolen balance and turned in time to see Mario charging at Marth. The prince lashed out with his blade, and Mario knocked it aside with a precise forearm, following up with a right hook that Marth danced away from.

Realizing he was just staring dumbly, Kirby dashed into the fray. While Mario was distracting Marth with low kick, Kirby made to attack from behind. He pulled back a fist and launched it at the small of Marth's back. The prince stumbled forward a bit, straight into Mario's prepared knee and sending him right back at Kirby's awaiting foot. Before Kirby could stike him again, Marth's sword came slashing at him from the side. Kirby yelped, just barely managing to leap to the side and out of reach.

Mario capitalized on Marth's brief diversion of attention by slamming a hard kick into the Prince's side. Marth staggered, but managed to regain his footing faster than Mario and jerked his arm out to slash at the Italian's shoulder. Mario released a cry of agony, stumbling back and clutching at the wound. Marth continued to advance and kicked at Mario's chest, sending him crashing to the ground.

"MARIO!" Kirby cried and rushed to get to the Italian's side as Marth loomed over him, sword poised to finish him off.

"Kirby, get him now!"

Mario grabbed both of Marth's ankles and fiercely yanked them towards him. The Prince tipped backwards, cape fluttering, and Kirby immediately pounced on the opportunity. He kept onto Marth's stomach as the swordsman landed, pulled his hand back, and rammed it as hard as he could into Marth's diaphragm.

Marth coughed violently as a puff of air blew past Kirby's face. The Prince blindly shoved Kirby off of him, and turned to the side to spit saliva and gasp heavily.

Kirby took the moment to rush to Mario's side.

"Are you okay?" Kirby demanded, hands hovering over Mario's form as he searched for some way to help.

"Fine," Mario rasped, chest heaving and face twisted in pain. "Don't worry about me right now. It's not as bad as I initially thought. Worry about Marth."

Kirby nodded, trusting Mario's mediacal knowledge, and turned away. He planted himself firmly between Marth and Mario, ready for another fight if the blow hadn't been enough.

Marth shook his head violently, hair whipping around, and pushed himself up to lean back on his knees. His gloved hand came up to rub harshly at his eyes, and Kirby stared at it with anxious impatience. As soon as the hand fell away, all the pent up stress in Kirby's body melted away, replaced by relief.

Clear, blue eyes stared ahead as Marth swipped the back of his hand across his mouth with a grimace.

"Hey, are you okay?" Kirby called, moving a little closer to Marth but unwilling to leave Mario's side.

Marth's head jerked up, and his eyes snapped towards Kirby and Mario. His gaze rapidly swept over their battered dorms, gaze briefly lingering at the nasty slice at Mario's shoulder, before his head drooped. 

"Please forgive me, you two," Marth whispered. "I'm not sure what came over me. I... It felt as though I was being controlled. I know that's not a good excuse, but I-!"

"Marth, stop that," Mario rasped, hand still firmly pressed against his wound. "The same thing happened to me. We understand."

Kirby nodded along with Mario's words. "Yeah, it's okay. Don't worry about it."

Marth expression remained guilty as he shifted to sit with his legs crossed. "Well... if you're sure. But I won't retract my apology. That wound looks awful, Mario."

Mario sighed. "I'll live. If you wanna help though, that cape of yours would probably make a decent wrapping."

Kirby didn't miss the slight twitch in Marth's expression at the idea of tearing up his cape, but the Prince nodded anwyas.

"Yes, of course."

The next several minutes were spent managing Mario's wound. By the end of it all, Marth was missing a good fourth of his cape, and Mario's outfit was in disarray. His left overalls button had been undone and his left shoulder was missing his undershirt's sleeve. His shoulder had been wrapped by Marth by Marth under Mario's directions. He'd done a decent job, according to Mario.

As Mario had said before, the wound really hadn't been as bad as Kirby had feared. It had been unpleasant to look at, bright red and leaking blood down Mario's collarbone and chest, but the slice had been clean around the edges, without any scraps of clothing lodged in it.

That done, they all found a spot to sit at among the stones and weeds of the ruins. Explanations were in order.

"Last I remember, we were ready face off against all those Master Hands. Then..." Marth'a brow furrowed. "That weird winged creature realeased those beams of light and... Everyone was consumed, right?"

"Almost. I managed to escape using my Warp Star," Kirby grinned, a little smug. Sure he'd crashed it in the end, but that didn't mean he wasn't proud of the fact he'd managed to slip through Galeem's clutches.

"Impressive," Marth praised, looking surprised.

Mario snickered from his seat on top of a small stray brick. "Don't be too impressed. He crashed it in the end."

Kirby shot Mario a resentful look, cheeks heating up. How dare he dethrone his achievement like that?!

Marth hummed. "That would explain those abrasions of yours. You typically dont get those kinds of wounds in a fist fight."

"No, not usually," Mario said, then turned to Kirby. "How are those, by the way?"

"They're fine," Kirby mumbled sourly, poking at a stray piece of rubble. Mario's concern made it unfairly difficult to stay mad at him.

"So, what happened next?" Marth said.

"I'm not a hundred percent on it," Mario admitted. "But I know I was possessed, like you were, and I attacked Kirby."

"I beat him!" Kirby cut in, trying to regain some of his lost pride.

"With a cheap shot," Mario grumbled.

"It must have been a difficult fight for you Kirby," Marth said with sympathetic smile on his charming face. "Going into battle right after such a terrible crash would have bested a lesser man."

"Thanks!" Kirby beamed at Marth. Finally, he was getting some credit!

"What happened after that?" Marth prompted, leaning forward.

"Well..." Kirby began, remembering the hectic chains of events that had transpired in the last quarter hour or so.

"Things took a weird turn," Mario said. "So here's what happened..."

~

"Goodness," Marth breathed, after Kirby and Mario had finished their tale. "You weren't kidding about it being weird." 

Kirby huffed out a laugh. "I know right! You'd think a being made of light would have good intentions."

"You would think so," Marth agreed.

There was a small lull in the conversation, and Kirby suddenly remembered something important.

"Ahhh! I forgot about Sheik and Villager!" Kirby exclaimed. "They're still trapped!"

Scrambling to his feet, Kirby did a wild turn to locate the two trapped fighters. They were still in the same spots, still encased in blindingly bright chains.

He dashed over to the closer of the two, Sheik, with Marth and Mario's footfalls right behind him.

Shiek stood completely still, not even a breath of air escaped her lips. Her whole body was lit with a soft white glow, further illuminated by the numerous bright chains snaking along her torso and legs. She'd look ethereal, if Kirby didn't know to associate The Light with that treacherous creature, Galeem.

"They slipped my mind too, Kirby," Mario conceded as he inspected the long chains of light. "So don't feel too bad."

That made Kirby's guilt ebb away a tad, but the worry continued to pool in his stomach. He had to remove Sheik's chains. Villager's as well. Even I'd that meant more battles, he could take it! He had Mario and Marth to back him up too. 

Something told him that touching the chains was a terrible idea, given the oppressive aura they were giving off in waves, but his hand was already reaching. He got about halfway before a gloved hand slapped his own away.

"Dont touch that! What are you crazy?" Mario snapped. "You saw how that energy took over Marth and I. What if it does the same to you?"

Kirby flinched away at Mario's tone and looked away quickly, feeling chided. He hadn't even considered how his mucking with the chains might spell trouble for the others.

"Sorry," Kirby mumbled, cheeks red. "You're right. I didn't think it all the way through." He really needed to get better at the whole 'thinking stuff through before he acted' thing.

"It's fine." Mario sighed heavily. "Just don't scare people like that. Being Galeem's puppet wasn't fun. I'd never wish it upon you."

"Sorry," Kirbt repeated, not knowing what else to say.

"It's fine," Mario said, more firmly this time.

The Italian then turned to Marth. "Can you give it a test poke with your sword?"

Marth blinked in surprise, looking a bit akward, like he'd been brought into a conversation he thought he wasn't supposed to be a part of. "Erm. Yes, certainly."

Marth heafted his blade, and carefully brought it near one of the large chains binding Sheik. With care, he tapped it against the edge of one chain, and then immediately lost his grip on his sword. It clattered to the stone ground below.

The trio stared at it.

"Sorry," Marth apologized, while rubbing gingerly at his arm. "Felt like all my muscles suddenly went slack."

"Right. Definitely stay away from weird light magic then." Mario huffed.

Kirby nodded in assent, still feeling a little foolish.

"Nothing to be done about it, I suppose. Maybe we'll find Robin or someone else with magic altering abilities later." Mario sighed, "For now, we really have to get a move on. That fog is still coming in, and we don't want to get caught up in it. Especially if it works the same as those chains."

Kirby blinked in surprise and turned to see that the fog was indeed a whole lot closer than it had been earlier. It was only a couple hundred yards away now. He'd completely forgotten about it.

"Oh dear, where did that come from," Marth said, peering into the distance.

"Dunno," Kirby shrugged. "It just showed up earlier. Maybe it's more of that Galeem guy's powers. He might be trying to stop us, or slow us down, at least."

Marth inclined his head "Maybe you're right. Well, we dont want to stick around and let him get his way then. Let's go."

The trio set off in the opposite direction of the fog, following the path Kirby had spied earlier. It was a boring walk. Only grass, flowers, and the odd tree offered any visual stimulus. Maybe the occasional insect. It wasn't until they were well into an hour of trailing the trail, that something of interest finally appeared.

"Woah..." Kirby breathed.

"Oh my, that's a long ways down," Marth fretted, looking a little faint.

Mario smiled, eyes wistful. "Reminds me of my racing days."

Stretching out miles ahead of them, was gaping black crater, filled with a dense forest of impossibly large, imposingly tall, mushrooms. They ranged in color and size. Some were red and as large as a house, while others were blue, only about the size of particulary big pancake. 

'Oh, a pancake sounds amazing right now,' Kirby thought mournfully, knowing food was likely a long time coming. Hopefully those cities he'd seen earlier had something to eat. A drink would be nice too...

"Do you think there's anyone down there?" Marth inquired, squinting down into the darkness that the mushrooms' stems disappeared in to.

"Only one way to find out," Mario offered, starting forwards.

"Hey, wait a moment!" Marth sputtered as Mario strolled closer and closer to the brim of the hole. "What are you doing? How in the world do you plan traverse this place?"

Mario stopped, right at the edge, and crouched low. "By jumping, of course!" 

With that, the Italian lept forwards like a junglecat, landing with practiced ease on a large blue mushroom several feet away. He even threw in a cheeky bow.

'Guess they dont call him Jumpman Mario for nothing,' Kirby thought as he began inflating with air, stopping just as his heels began lifting off the ground. He took a few brisk steps forwards, before launching himself towards Mario, mostly floating. The Italian caught him with a smile and set him on the ground beside him. They both looked over at Marth, expectant.

Thouroughly showed up, the swordsman had a prominent pout spread across his face. "I believe it would be best if I just stayed up here."

Lest he lose all the air he'd inhaled, Kirby had to try very hard not to laugh.


	3. Dude, Who Put All These Mushrooms Here?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a bit longer to make up for the time it took to make. Quick apology for any spelling or grammatical errors. I didn't have much time to edit this one.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

At about a couple hundred feet down into the damp, fungus laden cavern, Kirby's vision started to strain. Far above, the afternoon sunlight had rapidly bled away, blocked out by the many umbrella-like crowns of the mushrooms overhead. Though Mario stood merely a few yards below him, it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep track of his bright red cap and the shiny reflection of the cloth wrapped around his shoulder.

If his warning vision wasn't bad enough, the temperature was rapidly declining. It wasn't awful, but it was enough for Kirby to notice, enough for him to begin wondering if this was worth it. Why would Galeem put one the fighters down here, anyways?

Kirby landed softly on a expansive, flat mushroom top and let out a puff of air. He walked to the edge of his fungal platform and carefully peered over to see Mario preparing for another jump. 

"Do you think we should stop?" Kirby called, watching the Italian raise out of his couch to squint skywards.

"What?" 

"Should we stop going?" Kirby said, louder this time. "I mean, I can barely see the next mushroom below me."

Mario didn't say anything for a moment, perhaps thinking carefully. Kirby could almost picture him stroking his mustache, like he usually did when he was deep in thought.

"It is getting harder to see," Mario said eventually. "But I don't wanna go back up on the chance we might miss someone."

Kirby considered this. He didn't like knowing he might miss someone if they went up now. Plus, they'd have left Marth waiting up there for nothing, and have wasted energy for no gain.

"I guess you're right," Kirby said with a sigh, not at all looking forward to the thought of eventually reaching a point where light no longer followed them. "Let's keep going."

Surely, it couldn't be too much further down, right?

For once, it would seem luck had chosen Kirby's side. It was only a few dozen feet further, when he heard Mario's boots hit something with a startling crunch. That definitely wasn't a mushroom.

"Kirby, I think we might have finally reached the bottom," Mario called, sounding relieved.

Delighted, Kirby hastened to join his companion, following the sound of Mario's voice. A final leap, and his feet touched something that was a stark contrast to the springy texture of a mushroom. He shuffled one foot, and the substance below shifted around, producing tiny clinks. Could it be gravel? 

Kirby turned towards the Mario shaped blob that was his friend in the darkness. "Hey, Mario. Do you think this stuff is gravel?"

Mario shuffled his feet. "Could be. It certainly feels and sounds like it. Why?"

Kirby picked up a small rock and rolled it between his hands. "Isn't gravel usually formed next to rivers?"

"Oh!" Mario exclaimed, sounding pleased. "You're right! Good thinking Kirby!" 

Kirby beamed at the praise.

The Italian suddenly went silent, freezing in place if the halt of shifting gravel was anything to go by. Just as Kirby was about to ask what he was wrong, he spoke up.

"I think I can hear some water over there," Mario said, and Kirby saw a blobby version of his companion's hand wave somewhere ahead and to the left of them.

"That's great!" Kirby enthused. "Because I could really use a good bath. Feels like there's dirt stuck everywhere!"

"We also need to clean your wounds," Mario reminded as he started forwards in the darkness; Kirby followed close behind.

"Yours too!" 

"Yeah, mine too."

They walked in silence for a few minutes, listening carefully for the trickle of running water. Gradually the rush of water became louder, and their path noticable dipped.

It wasn't long before an underground river was noisily flowing before them.

"Alright!" Kirby cheered and rushed over to the edge of the water.

Just before he touched the water, something hard and solid smacked into his side, causing him to release a huge puff of air. The next second he was crashing into the chilly river, accidentally inhaling a huge gulps of water. 

The cool water quickly rushed through his veins saturating every pore and chilling his body. As Kirby surfaced, he briefly took in the barely visible ripple of the water that was now his flesh and blood, the weight of the gold crown resting snuggly on his head, before the anger and confusion set in.

"Kirby! Are you okay?" Mario asked, rushing to his side, then reared back in surprise. "Mama Mia! What happened to you?!"

"Just a water transformation!" Kirby assured him, then looked around in search for what had so rudely interrupted his bath time. "What in the world hit me?

Instead of recieving an answer, Kirby was struck by something small and leafy. It bounced off his head and let out a shrill squeak, before scurrying away, back towards the figure standing atop a raised rock.

The dull light above faintly reflected off a massive helmet, serving as protection for their attacker's large nosed and squinty eyed face. The rest of their attacker's form was obscured by a pristine space suit. Kirby narrowed his eyes a touch and recognized the distinct form of a Pikmin in the hand of what had to be Olimar. 

'Man...this was just supposed to be a nice bath,' Kirby thought irritably and began gathering water in his mouth for wave attack.

Mario put his fists up, bent his knees, and trained his gaze on Olimar's glowing red eyes.

The two sides stared each other down, waiting for the other to make the first move.

At the shift of a boot, Kirby launched his prepared attack. Olimar dodged, and Mario came charging in, fist pulled back.

The fight had begun.

~

Kirby panted heavily and clutched at the burn he'd received just after his water form had worn off. He'd been lucky this time. The only other injury he'd garnered was a small scratch on his cheek, caused by the jagged leaves of sharp eyed blue Pikmin.

Mario looked to be doing okay. Had he not been burdened with the pain of his injured shoulder, the Italian most likely wouldn't have been injured at all. A too slow movement from his damaged arm had costed him a busted lip.

Olimar, too, seemed to be faring fine, if a little shaken. They'd managed to shock him out of his possession by threatening one of his red Pikmin. Sure, they probably could've figured out a nicer way of clearing Olimar's head, but it had certainly done the trick. The little spacesuit wearing alien had been something to see, getting all up in Mario's space and threatening him in some weird alien tongue. Mario had relinquished the Pikmin, of course, not wanting to anger Olimar any further. After that, Mario started the long explanation for what had happened and how they were going to help everyone. 

Kirby allowed Mario to explain things this time. Even though he'd love nothing more than to go into the details of how he'd beaten the Italian, he had another task at the moment.

Gingerly, Kirby eased himself into the river waters, finally getting the chance to cleanse his wounds. His earlier transformation had helped him out a little. Some of the abrasions no longer looked quite as inflamed, and most of the grime had been washed away. But It didn't hurt to be thorough. Plus, the burn he'd taken to his side from that feisty red Pikmin would no doubt benefit from the effects of the cool river water.

Kirby sank into the water further, until his mouth disappeared beneath the surface. He blew out a few bubbles to amuse himself and watched them continue downstream. Where did the river go? Perhaps it led to some kind of underground lake or pond. Would it be worth finding out?

Kirby heard splashing to his left, and he turned his head to see Mario and Olimar approaching. The Pikmin captain was holding up a beady eyed red Pikmin. Like hot coals on a fireplace, the creature was glowing brightly, producing a welcome amount of light. Even though his eyes had adjusted as much as they could to the dank dimness of the fungal cavern, Kirby had been missing the ability to see clearly.

Mario splashed forward and Kirby saw that he'd discarded his overalls and shoes and socks. His undershirt was gone too, exposing the bloody expanse of Marth's cape. Kirby zeroed in on the fabric, feeling worried and a little nauseous at the thought of the stab wound beneath it.

"How's your shoulder?" Kirby asked with a wince.

Mario sat down beside him with a sigh. "Well, that fight certainly didn't help it any. Neither did all that jumping earlier."

Kirby felt a stab of guilt. He hadn't even thought about how coming down here might have affected Mario's injury. All that moving around would have stretched and pulled at the skin, further irritating it. Maybe it would be better if Mario went back now? Kirby could probably float him all the way back up. It'd be difficult, but he could manage...

"Maybe you should go back to rest," Kirby said. "I can float you back up there, and-"

Mario held up a hand. "I'm good. This-" Mario patted his shoulder "-probably isn't anything to worry about. The river will help clean it out, and I'll be able to get a better look at it."

Kirby regarded Mario carefully, hearing the Italian hiss as he began unraveling Marth's cape to clean the wound underneath. Kirby wasn't convinced that his wound was 'nothing to worry about.' He'd seen it happen, seen how Mario had went down, clutching at his shoulder in agony. He never wanted to see that happen to any of his friends again.

It wasn't like he'd ever convince Mario to take a break, though. He'd have better luck convincing King Dedede to take up fasting.

King Dedede...

Kirby missed him dearly, along with Metaknight. The King might have been his enemy in the past, and Metaknight was a bit of a slave driver when it came to training, but Kirby loved them both dearly. 

'I wonder if they're okay..."

"That's an awfully sad expression on your face, Kirby," Mario said, looking concerned, while he dunked Marth's cape underwater to clean it.

Behind the Italian, Olimar nodded his agreement, though the concern was a bit harder to decipher on his face.

Mario's brow furrowed a little. "If you really want me to go back-"

Kirby was quick to cut him off. "No, no! It's not about that! You can stay if you think you're good to keep going. Not that I'd stop you."

Olimar tilted his head, and Kirby could see the question clear on his face.

"It's about King Dedede and Metaknight," Kirby admitted with a sigh. "I was just thinking about them, and... I miss them, a lot. What if we can't find them?"

"We will," Mario said immediately, and began gently washing off the dried blood at the edges of his wound, wincing occasionally. "I know what you're going through. I miss my brother and Princess Peach. And Yoshi..."

Mario hung his head, and Olimar reached out to pat him on the back.

Kirby sighed, wondering what he did to deserve being in this whole situation. Why did powerful Gods make a habit of mucking about with his life?

Things had been going great at the mansion, before the attack. Incredible tournaments were held with regualarity. Friendly rivalries were upheld. Eternal enemies showed off thrilling fights. Plesant morning breakfasts saw the sleepy interactions of those excited for what the day had in store. Rambunctious evening lit up the night, filled with the naughty chatter of adults and the quiet whispers of kids who thought they were eavesdropping with the greatest stealth imaginable.

Kirby didn't just miss his closest people, he missed everyone being together. Everyone creating memories. Some good, some bad. Most of all, he missed the sense of security he'd had when they were all together. Galeem had stolen that away from him. And for that... well, God or not, it was going to pay.

~

Some time later, and they were ready to continue on. It was difficult to tell how much time had really passed. The sun was almost entirely blocked out by the mushroom caps above. For all Kirby knew, it could be anywhere from sundown to sunrise.

Olimar and Kirby had both helped Mario deal with his shoulder. After washing it in the river, Olimar had ordered a pair of red Pikmin to dry the fabric off the best they could. Once it was mostly dry, Kirby had wrapped it up the heat he could. and they'd set off again.

The goal was to explore the entirety of the of the mushroom cavern floor. Luckily, the place turned out not to be too large.

They'd started by tracking the river. Upstream, there'd been a huge wall of stone in their way, covered in odd looking lichens and flat mushrooms. Seeping down the smooth rock, tiny water trails fed into the river below. Downstream, they'd been blocked by a huge overhang of stalactites. They'd been thick and dense, far too many for them to break through all continue to follow the river.

Most of their exploring hadn't turned up anything helpful. No one jumped out at them like Olimar had, and there hadn't been any signs of weird light magic. Just weird mushrooms and the occasional even weirder bug.

Just when Kirby was nearing the end of his patience with their adventures in the damp mushroom cavern, he spotted something.

"Hey!" Kirby called, hand pointed ahead. "Is that a tunnel over there?"

His friends turned, and peered into the darkness. Olimar stepped forward, holding out his red Pikmin. The light bled into the cavern walls, and exposed a long, stalagmite filled tunnel.

"Good find, Kirby," Mario said, starting forwards to get a better look.

Kirby smiled and followed behind.

"You think there's anything interesting down there?" Mario wondered aloud.

Kirby grumbled "I hope so. This place is so boring! Nothing but mushrooms and moss! Anything could top that!"

Mario chuckled, nodding his head in agreement. "Even I'm getting sick of all these mushrooms! And I live in the Mushroom Kingdom!

With that, they started forward, the pair of glowing red Pikmin leading the way.

Thankfully, the tunnel wasn't too long. It was only a few minutes of walking, when it opened up abruptly.

Before their eyes, a massive, glowing lake filled an expansive bowl shaped hole. It was fed by a iridescent cascading waterfall, producing hundreds of tiny ripples on the water's surface. Weirdly, the lake seemed to be flowing in currents that didn't match the force of the waterfall. Also, waves crashed and receded on a shore before them, something that wouldn't be possible underground.

Mushrooms grew all around the edges of the lake, peaking out of rocks and gravel. Strings of moss crept down the cave walls, flashing a visible blue hued glow. The place would be beautiful, mystifying, if Kirby didn't recognize that now familiar cloak of too bright magic saturating the air. Somehow, it would seem Galeem knew they were coming here.

"Wow..." Mario breathed. "That's beautiful."

"I'd agree, but I really don't we should be here," Kirby told him, letting a lit of urgency into his voice.

"What? Why not?" Mario asked.

Kirby turned to his companion, a feeling of unease creeping inside him."It's that weird magic from before, I think this is a trap!"

Mario frowned, sharing a glance with Olinar. "Are you sure you aren't just being paranoid. I know we've been down here awhile, but I don't want to leave just yet. There might be someone here."

Mario pivoted in time to block a huge red fist, grunting from the impact. He stumbled back a few steps, before he threw his attacker off with an almighty shove.

A round yellow body, red gloves, red eyes, a big mouth, tiny eyes, and a pointed nose greeted the trio.

Pacman.

"I knew there wasn't something right here!" Kirby declared, feeling vindicated that his sense of magic was still going strong.

"Oh, fine. You were right," Mario said, shifting his stance. "But it's just another fighter. You didn't notice Olimar earlier."

"No-I think," Kirby looked past Pacman at the huge lake. "It's not coming from him. It's the lake. Maybe we shouldn't go in it. It might be like the fog."

"Fine then," Mario nodded. "I guess we'll just have to avoid the water." 

Kirby nodded in return, while Olimar readied a sparking Pikmin in his right hand.

Legs tense, arms at the ready, the trio charged.

Pacman didn't stand a chance.

~

"And that's what happened," Kirby finished, watching Pacman for his reaction.

He nodded enthusiastically, and gave Kirby a thumbs up. Hopefully that meant he was on board to help.

"Hey Kirby," Mario said, grabbing the puff's attention.

Kirby walked over to where Mario was staring out at the lake, Olimar at his side. Pacman followed Kirby, peering over his head.

"What's up?" Kirby asked, when it became clear the Italian wasn't going to speak first.

"Do you see that dark spot over there? Behind the waterfall?"

Kirby squinted hard at the waterfall. He didn't see anything at first, just the rush of falling water, but then he saw the teeth-like stalactites and the dark shadow beneath it. Could it be another cave?

Mario shifted his attention to the group. "I think it's a tunnel, like before."

Pacman made a distinctly confused noise.

"Oh right, sorry," Mario said. "We came in through there." He pointed at the dark spot they'd used to enter earlier.

Pacman nodded, satisfied with that answer.

Mario continued. "Right, well if it is another tunnel, it might lead to another fighter, like Pacman."

Kirby held up a hand to stop him, already knowing where this was going. 

"I told you earlier. That water is definitely infused with Galeem's weird energy. Waves can't form underground." Kirby paused. "And I really don't think it's a good idea to touch it."

"Ah, I'd forgotten about that," Mario knitted his brows.

Everyone fell silent for a moment, and Kirby stewed on how they could get past the water. Either they'd need someone capable to commanding the flow of water, or they'd need a barrier of some kind. Plus, a barrier might not work, at least not any kind of natural one. Who knows how much magic is needed to possess a fighter. One drop might turn someone. 

His own Water form didn't possess the ability to shift and bend water at will. Perhaps his tornado ability could work, but where would he get the resources for such a thing? Nothing down here could give him that ability. Back at his own home, wind enemies, like Twister, usually did the trick. Of course, the wind from an incredible storm could do in a pinch, but there hadn't been a cloud in the sky today. Maybe they could wait for a storm? No, no this was silly. What they needed, was for someone with natural magical capabilities to cleanse the lake of Galeem's energy. Who did he know who could do that...?

"Maybe we should wait to bring someone like Rosalina back here? She's an incredible mage, right? She might be able to purify the water," Kirby said.

Mario and the other considered this, and Kirby got a trio of head nods.

Mario sighed. "I wish we could see what's in there now, but I guess that's our best option."

"I agree with you," Kirby said. "But I can't think of a better way through that right now."

"I know, I know," Mario said, then pointed at their exit. "Right, then. I suppose we should get a move on back to the surface. I'm sure Marth is bored out of his mind."

~

It took awhile, but the group eventually managed to climb, jump, or fly their way back to the surface.

As they'd ascended, Kirby's noticed with an increasing sense of guilt and exhaustion, that the moon had risen high into the sky. Marth was going to be so peeved.

They found Marth picking at the blades of grass beneath him, expression exceptionally sour. He turned at the sound of their approach, and his whole face soured even further, somehow.

"Oh, finally!" Marth yawped. "Do you have any idea how long you were down there!?" 

Kirby exchanged a glance with Mario, then let out a yawn.

"Uh, no?"

"Five hours!" Marth snapped. "Probably more, honestly! I got so bored waiting for you to come back, I started counting! I cannot believe you two!"

Kirby winced. He hadn't realized it'd taken that long. The taste of adventure made one lose their sense of time, it would seem. Between going down, exploring the underground river, fighting Olimar, finding that huge lake, then battling Pacman, planning out how they were gonna get to the hole behind the waterfall, and finally the trek back, they hadn't even been thinking about the amount of time they'd spent down there. Kirby didn't doubt Marth's measurement of time either. The full moon shone brightly in the sky whereas it had been outshined by the late afternoon sun before. At least they hadn't returned empty handed.

Mario looked sheepish, "Really, I do apologize, but look who we found!" 

He pointed behind him at Olimar and Pacman. Pacman gave Marth a wave.

Marth narrowed his brow and scrunched up his mouth, then he sighed heavily. "Oh fine. I guess I can't be too mad at you for rescuing more fighters."

"Exactly!" Kirby chimed in. "Now, as terrible as I feel for making you wait that long, I think I'll be able to give you a better apology in the morning." Kirby cut himself off with a wide, purposeful yawn, and flopped onto the grass beneath him. With the day he'd had, anywhere at all would be the perfect place to sleep.

"What, are we just going to sleep in the grass?" Kirby cracked open an eye to peer at Marth's look of disdain.

"Uh, yeah?" Kirby said, watching Pacman and Olimar settle in their own spots. At least they weren't complaining. Not that either of them ever spoke.

"What's with that look on your face?" Mario asked, already searching for a comfortable patch of grass. "Weren't you playing with the grass earlier?"

"That's completely different!" Marth protested. "I wasn't lying in it. I was sitting on it. Lying in it means there's a chance dirt and bugs will get all over me. That'd be repulsive!"

"Okie dokey, drama queen." Mario promptly rolled over, eyes closed.

"Well I never!" Marth huffed, turning his nose up at the Italian.

"Oh, c'mon," Kirby grumbled, while rubbing at his eyes. He was in no mood to be dealing with this. "If you're that worried about it, why don't you use just lay on top of your cape?"

Marth hummed, a bit obnoxiously. "Fine. I suppose that could work." 

Marth then set about fixing his torn cape in a way that would prevent him from touching the ground. At least, that's what Kirby assumed he was doing. He'd already rolled over and closed his eyes, sleep pulling heavily at his mind.

In just a few minutes, Kirby was asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! I decided to put that lake where you find Ryu underground. I thought it'd make things a little more interesting. I apologize for kinda chickening out on the fight scenes this time. I'm not the best at them, and I dont want this whole story to be about fighting, anyways. (Even though that's the point of the franchise)
> 
> Sorry for ending it a bit abruptly as well, but I was getting tired of the chapter. So was Kirby.
> 
> (Also ao3 keeps eating my italicized words for some reason. Sorry about that)


	4. On the Move!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This one took me a lot longer than I would have liked it to. It fought with me the entire way. I had to get rid of, like, a thousand words because I wasn't satisfied with the direction it was going. As a result, it is a bit shorter than the others, but I snuck in some fun moments.
> 
> I've also been dealing with real life things, such as finally nailing down a first job, which is pretty exciting! It also means my free time is down, but I do plan to continue this story. 
> 
> Anyways enjoy!

Something shook Kirby urgently, disrupting his dream with startling abruptness. He rolled over with exaggerated dramatics and let out an unhappy noise. Who in the _world_ thought they were significant enough to interrupt his very important cake filled dream?

"Come on now, Kirby. We _really_ need to get going." 

That was Marth's voice, but Kirby had no intentions of paying any attention to it. Getting back to sleep was far more important than whatever the prince was concerned about.

Marth shook him again.

"This is very urgent, Kirby! We need to move!" 

Marth sounded really worried... 

Kirby sighed and kissed his frosting filled dreams goodbye. He cracked open an eye and saw Marth looming over him, anxious blue gaze currently focused on something in the near distance.

Kirby rubbed at his eyes roughly, mind still dusting off the clinging spiderwebs of sleep. What could Marth be so worried about at this hour? The sun hadn't even risen yet, content to sit on the horizon and observe Kirby's disrupted sleep with glee.

Sure, they needed to find everyone as soon as possible, but the prince was acting like they were in some kind of life threatening danger. And yeah, Kirby supposed they were. Galeem wasn't exactly inviting them over for tea and little cakes, but there wasn't anything to worry about right at the moment, was there?

Thoroughly confused, Kirby peered up at Marth through half lidded eyes. "Whatz wrong. Whatza hurry?"

Marth gave him an exasperated look, and waved his hand behind him. "It's the fog! It moved way more than we anticipated over the course of the night. We really need to get out of here!"

Kirby blinked rapidly in surprise, and sprung to his feet, receiving a sudden jolt of pain from his body in retaliation. _Ugh_ , injuries were always worse the next day. Ignoring the sting, he pivoted to see, as promised, the wave of fog approaching them, only a few dozen feet away. Way, way closer than it had been yesterday. 

Mario was still asleep, hat askew and face smushed into the grass. Pacman slumbered a ways to the right of him, and Olimar, along with most of his Pikmin, seemed to be just stirring.

"I'll wake Pacman and explain what's going on to Olimar," Marth said, voice taking on a commanding lit. "You deal with Mario."

Kirby smiled. "Roger that!" He couldn't help throwing in a cheeky salute.

Marth gave an look somewhere between fond and exasperated, before crouching down beside Pacman and calling Olimar over.

The Pikmin captain passed by Kirby, and gave him a sleepy, questioning head tilt. Kirby nodded in the direction of the fog, and did his best not to laugh at the alarmed squeak Olimar emitted. 

Mario was out _cold_. Yesterday's battles, coupled with the agrivaring injury at his shoulder had likely sapped the Italian of all his energy. Kirby himself was feeling pretty drained, and as tempting as it was to find a nice patch of grass and sleep till the sun rose a little higher, Kirby had enough sense to realize that letting the fog wash over them wouldn't be a great plan.

"Hey, Mario. We gotta get up," Kirby said, sitting down beside the Italian's head.

Mario didn't budge.

Kirby frowned. "C'mon the fog's really close now."

He reached out to poke Mario's cheek and had to scramble to avoid an irritated swat. Kirby stuck his tongue out at the Italian in retaliation, a pointless endeavour, seeing as the Italian's face was in the dirt, but it made the Star Warrior feel better. 

Kirby prodded Mario's side, a little more forcefully than necessary. His friend released a grunt and rolled out of Kirby reach.

Fine then! If Mario was going to ignore him, Kirby had to find a way to be heard. Stepping back a few paces, he rapidly reclaimed the ground in a run that ended in a tackle aimed at Mario's midsection. The Italian released a shout of surprise as they tumbled over one another for a few feet, before being halted by a moss covered rock.

"Awake now?" Kirby intoned from his upside down position next to Mario's feet.

Mario gave him an unamused, sleep deprived look and nudged Kirby away with a gentle kick. Kirby rolled away laughing.

After everyone was fully updated on the fog situation, and, mostly, awake, the group set off once more. They stuck to the same path they'd be following since the beginning.

It was sort of odd, now that Kirby thought about it that there was a path here at all. Sure, Kirby remembered seeing a few cities and structures when he'd caught his first glimpse of the canyon, but they were much further out. Why would there be paths to pretty much no where this far away from civilization? Who'd put them here and why? It was also weird how there had been so many things crammed together in this canyon. You didn't normally see a molten volcano and a snowy mountain within viewing distance of each other, even if they were ginormous. Plus, there had been all those different colored forests and seemingly random cities. 

It was almost like... this whole land had been specifically crafted for them to explore and locate all the fighters. But that was silly. Why would Galeem... why would Galeem have all the fighters spread out like this to begin with? If it was really trying to prevent any kind of retaliation, why hadn't it immediately sent everyone it had available to subdue Kirby and convert him? Maybe it was like a sadistic game to it? Did it want to watch him struggle to save everyone and then take it all away again?

What if this was all for nothing?

Kirby felt a hand on his head, and turned to see Marth crouching beside him, concerned. "Are you alright, my friend? You seem greatly troubled. Is it your wounds?" Marth peered at on of the cuts on Kirby's face. "I must say they look quite unpleasant."

"They're doing okay. I was just thinking about some stuff," Kirby said. "Don't worry about it." Kirby smiled up at Marth in an effort to reassure him, even though he himself wasn't feeling all that assured.

"If you're certain..." Marth said and raised from the ground to continue walking.

It was probably best not to trouble the others with his thoughts right now. He could be entirely wrong, then there'd be no point in worrying everyone. Maybe some other kind of being had created this land for fun and Kirby really had coincidentally landed here. Then, perhaps, Galeem had come after him and started deploying all the converted fighters to watch Kirby put up a fight. 

It was a theory, for sure. Maybe he could work up the courage to bring it up with the others later on, when he had some evidence. For the moment, Kirby just wanted to focus on finding and freeing as many puppet fighters as they could. 

~

They followed the faded trail for a good quarter of the day, stopping occasionally for bathroom breaks and hiding under the odd tree to catch a few minuets of shade. 

"How's everyone doing?" Kirby asked, leaning agaisnt the bark of a leafy tree and enjoying the shade it provided.

"Physically or mentally?" Mario deadpanned.

Kirby shrugged. 

"Well," Mario drawled, leaning back to keep the sun out of his eyes. "My shoulder isn't doing amazing. In fact, I need to change it again, if you don't mind Marth."

Marth sighed and glanced back at the mangled piece of cloth that used to be his cape. "It's no issue. I would probably be better off without it at the moment anyways."

Mario shot him a smile, and the two set about rewrapping his wound.

"What about you two?" Kirby asked, directing his attention at Olimar and Pacman.

Olimar gave him sullen chirp, and gestured at his sweating face, and Pacman, flopped onto his back at the base of the tree, threw Kirby a halfhearted thumbs up.

Kirby winced.

He himself wasn't doing great, feeling hot, sweaty, hungry, and thirsty. And tired. And stinging from his abrasions. And, well, he could go on.

All too soon, Marth finished wrapping Mario's shoulder and it was time to continue forward. As they heaved themselves to their feet, the group gave the pool of shade beneath their small tree a mournful look, before starting their march once more.

It seemed to be getting _hotter_ as they forged on, or maybe it was just the dehydration and hunger setting in. Kirby hadn't eaten since yesterday's breakfast, when all of this nonsense began, and his metabolism cleaned things up faster than he could blink. 

Hopefully they'd run into a source of running water and some kind of wild animal or something. Kirby wasn't usually one to kill innocent creatures, but he also wasn't one to argue with his stomach. 

As if the world had been listening in on his thoughts, a colorful bird suddenly zipped across the group's path. Before Kirby could even blink in surprise, Marth had his sword drawn and was leaping skyward to slash at the avain. The bird dodged with a quick wingover, cawed indignantly, and flew up and over the crest of the hill they'd been climbing.

Marth landed heavily in a crouch. " _Blast_!" 

"Somebody was hungry," Mario commented as Marth rose from the ground.

" _Of course I am_!" Marth snapped. "Aren't you? We haven't eaten since breakfast yesterday, and yesterday was an _incredibly_ eventful day!"

Kirby felt his stomach grumble foreloanly at the reminder. Olimar sent him a sympathetic look.

"Has it really been that long?" Mario wondered, hand on his stache. "I'm not all that hungry."

Kirby stared at him in shock. "You're crazy! I could eat like-like a whole three layered cake right now!"

Mario shrugged, unbothered, and continued walking.

Pacman pointed at Mario's back and did the cuckoo gesture. Kirby stifled a giggle.

As they crossed over the top of the hill, more and more small trees popped up on the horizon. The heat seemed to be rising in time with the increasing amount of foliage. Another hour into the hike and Kirby was pausing every few minutes to wipe at the sweat pooling on his face.

"This heat is just _dreadful_ ," Marth groaned, swiping the back of a bare hand across his forehead. He'd ditched his gloves a long ways back.

"I have to agree," Mario said, panting lightly as they began ascending another hill. "This terrain isn't helping any either."

Olimar chirped in agreement, practically glistening under his helmet. Many of his Pikmim had decided to use the captain as a ride. Kirby spotted a blue one flopped on its stomach atop Olimar's shoulder, and a purple one shielding its eyes from the sun, perched on Olimar's other shoulder.

Pacman had his eyes downcast, letting his hands drag behind him in the dirt as he visibly strained against the incline of the hill. The poor guy looked like a melting gumball.

Kirby had to wonder at the sudden change in temperature. It had been fairly plesant yesterday, when he and Mario had been exploring the hilly grasslands. Why was it suddenly so hot? He wasn't a genius when it came to weather patterns, but temperatures didn't normally change so rapidly, right? It was almost like they'd been dumped in a jungle or something.

Just as the group finally reached the top of the hill, Kirby felt his mouth fall open at the view.

Marth squinted down the hill, and wrinkled his nose. "Well that explains why it was getting so hot, I suppose."

Climbing high into the sky, hundreds of jungle trees competed for sunlight. From their twisting branches, long, entangled vines scratched at the leaf litter and dense shrubbery below. Colorful flowers in red and gold popped out of the undergrowth, complementing the many shades of green leaves covering the jungle's trees and bushes.

It was beautiful, breathtaking, so incredibly hot and humid, and... and _terrible_.

Kirby's awed expression gradually fell away as he realized what the appearance of the jungle meant.

They were going to have to explore it. They were going to have to continue to sweat and suffer from the heat. They were going to trip over roots and lose themselves in the shrubbery. They were going to get bit by mosquitos...

_Buuut_...

There might be fruit and water hidden between the jungle's sly leaves and branches.

That, along with a potential found fighter or two along the way, was all Kirby needed to dismiss the disadvantages of traveling through the jungle. He _was_ going to find food and water, he _was_ going to locate more controlled fighters, and he _was_ going to _curse_ Galeem's name the _entire_ time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't forgotten about the military base! I've plans for that one ;)


	5. I Wish We Had Some Bugn't Spray

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah I went with that title

The jungle was hot, noisy, and seriously testing the limits of Kirby's patience. Bugs kept buzzing too close to his face, stray twigs and rocks had made it their personal mission to trip him, and Kirby swore the tree were alive with the amount of time he'd smaked into a stray branch. Not to mention the _humidity_... 

It was plain torturous.

Mario wasn't fairing much better. Yet again, the Italian swiped his glove across his forehead, expression throughly irritated. As if to release some of that anger, he swated aggressively at a nearby insect with his cap.

Kirby saw the bug hit the ground with a dying buzz.

"This is just _atrocious_ ," Marth complained, moving a strand of sweaty hair out of his face.

"Agreed," Kirby panted, to the grumbling agreement of the rest of the group.

They'd only been meandering for less than an hour, and Kirby was already convinced the sun was going to evaporate them. It wasn't even midday yet!

Kirby stepped onto a gnarled tree root and peered into the jungle for moment, trying to see... well... something. Any kind of clues that there was something other than buzzing insects and screeching macaws in there. Nothing so far.

"Do you think there's any food around here?" Marth asked, clutching at his gut.

As if on cue, Kirby's stomach rumbled obnoxiously, and he ducked his head in embarrassment.

"I hope so," Kirby mumbled. "It feels like there's a huge hole where my stomach is."

Mario looked at him funny. 

"What?"

Mario glanced away and began fanning himself with his hat. "Nothing. I just... Do you even have a stomach? Or, any organs at all?"

"Uh," Was Kirby's intelligent response.

Did he have any organs? He'd thought about it before, sure, but those thoughts were usually fruitless. He had a tongue and he bled blood, but... inner organs? There wasn't really any room, give the size of his mouth. Maybe they were all really small? But that wouldn't explain his ability to eat ridiculous amounts of food. Maybe all the food was transported somewhere else when he ate it. A huge alternate dimension or something... Maybe.

"I don't know," Kirby said eventually. 

Mario's face turned even more incredulous and Pacman looked weirded out.

"What!?" Kirby demanded. "It's not like I have anyone to talk to about this kinda stuff. The only person who looks like me is MetaKnight, and he isn't very chatty as is, not that I blame him. But talking to him about anything personal is like trying to open a can of tuna with a soggy chip!"

"That's-" Mario held up a finger to object, paused, then put it back down "-fair."

They continued on for another hour or so in shared silence, broken occasionally by someone's complaints of sweat and dirt or the shriek of a colorful bird.

Nothing had stood out in Kirby's vision so far. All around him was dirt, leaves, and tree bark, maybe the occasional rock. And then, suddenly, he spotted something of great interest indeed.

A ways off to his right a stood a small tree, partly shaded by a large, moss covered rock and some small shrubs. From the tree's thin branches, several orange fruits hung next to one another at varying heights. They all looked plenty ripe as well.

Kirby, reinvigorated with energy at the thought of food, shot away from the group like an antelope would a lion. He ignored the inquiring shouts from his friends and made a beeline straight for the tree.

Sliding to a stop at the base of the fruit tree, Kirby reached up and tore off one of the fruits, devouring it in one bite. 

Oh, it was the best thing he'd ever had! Juicy and sweet and hydrating and perfectly mango tasting! It felt like his whole body had just been injected with a shot of energy!

Kirby reached up to grab another, when a shout caught his attention.

Mario came stumbling through the foliage, panting and sweating. Marth and Pacman were close behind him, and Olimar brought up the rear.

"Why-why'd you run off like that?" Mario asked, breathless.

Kirby pulled off another mango and held it up like a prize, watching as his friends' eyes lit up.

"Food!" Marth cheered, and immediately made to snatch the mango out of Kirby's grasp, but stopped himself. "Er, may I have that one?"

Kirby snickered and tossed him the fruit. Marth caught it in both hands and rushed to take a bite, not bothering to wait for the others.

"Oh, that's delicious!" The prince sighed, fruit juice staining the corners of his mouth.

It was a little funny how all of Marth's polite, princely mannerisms dissipated when he was hungry, and tired, and fed up with the vicious heat of the jungle... Okay, maybe it wasn't _that_ weird.

Kirby passed out a handleful of mangoes to the others and took four of them for himself. He found a bare patch of dirt by a tree root and sat himself down. The others followed his example and they were soon digging into the first meal they'd had in over a day and a half.

"This is the best thing I've ever tasted!" Marth said between mouthfuls of fruit. "I could eat mangoes forever!"

Mario sideyed him, while taking much slower and smaller bites out of his mango. "Don't you eat real fancy food back at your palace?" 

Marth barely slowed down to answer. "Well, yes, but I never went hungry at the palace. This is the longest I've ever been without food!"

Mario's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Haven't you been on long adventures too? I remember plenty of times where Luigi and I went a few days without eating."

Marth pulled one leg up to his chest and threw an arm over his knee. "I've certainly had many adventures far way from my home, but I always carried plenty of money with me. There was always a town to stop at and gather supplies. Was it not the same for you?"

"No," Mario drawled and rested his head in one hand. "Though it wasn't a question of money. I was usually too deep into Bowser's territory to even _think_ about stopping at one of the stores. They were always run by his minions."

Kirby winced in sympathy, imagining just how poorly Bowser's lackeys would react to their boss's number one enemy trying to buy their wares. Based on what Kirby had heard from Luigi, they were incredibly loyal to the ferocious reptile. No amount of money would convince them to go against Bowser's wishes, lest they had plans to see an early grave.

"That must have been hard," Marth said, "I can't imagine going that long without eating." As if to punctuate his point, he took another bite of his second mango.

Kirby had already finished all four of his fruits, feeling leaps and bounds better than he had in the past several hours. A useful benefit of his odd body was its ability to snap up the energy of food and use it to heal itself. The ability didn't _completely_ mend his injuries--and he had to be resting--but it greatly hastened the process to a certain extent. The abrasion on his hand now looked around a week old, instead of mere days. His feet were less sore too.

Kirby may not really know how his body functioned, but at least it had its benefits.

A snore caught his attention, and Kirby saw that Pacman had gobbled up his share and passed out in the dirt. To his left, Olimar was tearing his mango into small pieces and stuffing them through a small feeding hole in his helmet. From the looks of it, the hole had two panels, one on the outside that could be opened--then closed--to capture the food, and another on the inside that could be opened to allow Olimar to eat the fruit without the risk of suffocating.

' _A neat little system,_ ' Kirby thought. 

Olimar's Pikmin had all taken a page out of Pacman's book and were sprawled around, soaking up sun and sleep. They looked peaceful...

"-wasn't all bad," Mario said and Kirby snapped to attention, focusing back on his friend's conversation.

Mario smiled. "We got real good at knowing which mushrooms were safe to eat-" He held up his right hand. "-and which ones gave you a nasty stomach ache." His left hand joined the right.

"Oh-Oh!" Kirby jumped in as a thought occured to him. "Is _that_ where Master Hand got the idea for the growing and shrinking mushrooms that sometimes appear during matches?"

"That's right!" Mario grinned. "But there's _way more_ powerups than that one on my home planet." 

"The fire flower's from your home, right?" Marth cut in, tossing his third mango pit in the dirt beside him. "The one that spits out fire."

"That's how _Master Hand's_ fire flower works, yes," Mario said, then smirked. "The one back at home give me the power to shoot fire from my fingertips! That's where he got the idea for my special attack."

"Ah, I was wondering about that," Marth said. "It didn't make much sense to give a plumber a fire ability."

Mario shrugged. "He gave me F.L.U.D.D. too."

"F.L.U.D.D.?"

"He's the little water pack I use. We're a great pals!" 

"Wait, he's _alive_!?" 

They spent the next hour sharing stories and features of their home lands. Marth talked about the challenges of upkeeping his princely duties, like preparing for the day he'd be king and keeping good relations with the townsfolk. Mario shared the story of how he'd been thrown in jail for being wrongly accused of dirtying up an island, and then had to clean the entire thing to prove his innocence. Olimar had chipped in too, though it was rather difficult to understand his mimed gestures and excited trills.

Best Kirby could gather was that the little Captain had, single-handedly, slain a great beast using the help of his Pikmin and his own two fists. 

That was wrong, though. Probably.

Kirby himself had prattled on about the time MetaKnight had challenged him to a duel. It had honestly been one of scariest moments in his life. The swordsman was no joke when he really threw himself into combat. Kirby remembered, all too well, the adrenaline that had been pumping through his veins during that fight. The glancing blows, the loud clangs of metal against metal, the hasty dodges, and the triumph, then shock he felt when he managed to slice open MetaKnight's mask to reveal a face not unlike his own. It had been terrifying and exhilarating all in the same, and it made Kirby dearly miss sparing with his friend...

But he'd get him back. He had to.

Kirby sighed. "We should probably get going."

The group reluctantly gathered themselves up and Mario shook Pacman awake. Soon they were on the move again, struggling through the undergrowth and doing their best to tolerate the last of the sun's midday rays, while hoping to locate any signs that someone else had been here.

It wasn't going well. As far as Kirby could see, jungle trees, shrubs, vines, birds and insects dominated his surroundings. There'd been no disrupted tree limbs, no trampled leaves, and no footprints in the dirt or _anything at all_.

Kirby stared hard at the ground as they picked their way through the jungle, feeling frustrated and impatient. There were so many fighters they still had to find, and it was driving him up a wall, knowing that there might not even be anyone here.

' _Stupid Galeem._ ' Kirby thought sourly. ' _Stupid leaves, getting in the way. Annoying humidity and heat. Stupid weirdly shaped hole I have to go around- wait.'_

Kirby quickly backtracked and took another good look at the indent in the ground. It was composed of four round shapes, each separated by a thin line of dirt. It almost looked like a handprint, but where was the fifth finger?

Kirby glanced up to see the group looking back at him, curious. "Hey, come check this out. I think I found a handprint or something."

"Really?" Marth asked, eagerly rushing over and crouching down beside Kirby.

The others filtered in beside them and they all inspected the print closely.

"It seems to be missing the thumb," Marth observed, running a finger in the dirt where the thumb would be. "How odd."

"Maybe it's a monkey handprint," Mario suggested.

Marth looked at him weirdly. "Monkey's _have_ thumbs. They wouldn't be nearly as good at climbing without them."

Mario frowed. "Oh, sorry. I meant gorillas. Don't they walk on their knuckles?"

As if to demonstrate, he set his own hand in the large hole, matching his knuckles with the four indents. His hand looked incredibly small in comparison, and Kirby suddenly felt very uneasy.

"My, look at that. I believe you're right in your assessment, Mario," Marth said with a smile.

"Guys, uh," Kirby began, gaining the group's attention. "Who do we know who's currently under Galeem's control and is also a super strong gorilla?"

They all exchanged looks of alarm as realization dawned.

A shrill Pikmin squeak of terror was all the warning they got when something big and heavy burst through the undergrowth, shrieking and baring its teeth.

Donkey Kong, in all his eight foot glory, reared back on his hind legs, beat his chest twice, and released an ear splitting war cry.

Kirby gulped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Left you on a bit of cliff hanger, didn't I! Next chapter we get to see how the group deals with an 800 pound gorilla of pure, unrestricted rage!


End file.
